We Are Still Married by Garrison Keillor
EXCERPT: How To Write a Letter
from Garrison Keillor's book 'We Are Still Married'
We shy persons need to write a letter now and then, or else we'll dry up and blow away. It's true. And I speak as one who loves to reach for the phone, dial the number, and talk. I say, "Big Bopper here - what's shakin', babes?" The telephone is to shyness what Hawaii is to February, it's a way out of the woods, and yet: a letter is better.
Such a sweet gift - a piece of handmade writing, in an envelope that is not a bill, sitting in our friend's path when she trudges home from a long day spent among wahoos and savages, a day our words will help repair. They don't need to be immortal, just sincere. She can read them twice and again tomorrow: You're someone I care about, Corrine, and think of often and every time I do you make me smile.
We need to write, otherwise nobody will know who we are. They will have only a vague impression of us as A Nice Person, because, frankly, we don't shine at conversation, we lack the confidence to thrust our faces forward and say, "Hi! I'm Heather Hooten; let me tell you about my week." Mostly we say "Uh-huh" and "Oh, really." People smile and look over our shoulder, looking for someone else to meet.
So a shy person sits down and writes a letter. To be known by another person - to meet and talk freely on the page - to be close despite distance. To escape from anonymity and be our own sweet selves and express the music of our souls.
Same thing that moves a giant rock star to sing his heart out in front of 123,000 people moves us to take a ballpoint in hand and write a few lines to our dear Aunt Eleanor. We want to be known. We want her to know that we have fallen in love, that we quit our job, that we're moving to New York, and we want to say a few things that might not get said in casual conversation: Thank you for what you've meant to me, I'm very happy right now.
The first step in writing letters is to get over the guilt of not writing. You don't "owe" anybody a letter. Letters are a gift. The burning shame you feel when you see unanswered mail makes it harder to pick up a pen and makes for a cheerless letter when you finally do. I feel bad about not writing, but I've been so busy, etc. Skip this. Few letters are obligatory, and they are Thanks for the wonderful gift and I am terribly sorry to hear about George's death and Yes, you're welcome to stay with us next month, and not many more than that. Write those promptly if you want to keep your friends. Don't worry about the others, except love letters, of course. When your true love writes, Dear Light of My Life, Joy of My Heart, O Lovely Pulsating Core of My Sensate Life, some response is called for.
Some of the best letters are tossed off in a burst of inspiration, so keep your writing stuff in one place where you can sit down for a few minutes and (Dear Roy, I am in the middle of a book entitled We Are Still Married but thought I'd drop you a line. Hi to your sweetie, too) dash off a note to a pal. Envelopes, stamps, address book, everything in a drawer so you can write fast when the pen is hot.
A blank white eight-by-eleven sheet can look as big as Montana if the pen's not so hot - try a smaller page and write boldly. Or use a note card with a piece of fine art on the front; if your letter ain't good, at least they get the Matisse. Get a pen that makes a sensuous line, get a comfortable typewriter, a friendly word processor - whichever feels easy to the hand.
Sit for a few minutes with the blank sheet in front of you, and meditate on the person you will write to, let your friend come to mind until you can almost see her or him in the room with you. Remember the last time you saw each other and how your friend looked and what you said and what perhaps was unsaid between you, and when your friend becomes real to you, start to write.
Write the salutation - Dear You - and take a deep breath and plunge in. A simple declarative sentence will do, followed by another and another and another. Tell us what you're doing and tell it like you were talking to us. Don't think about grammar, don't think about lit'ry style, don't try to write dramatically, just give us your news. Where did you go, who did you see, what did they say, what do you think?
If you don't know where to begin, start with the present moment: I'm sitting at the kitchen table on a rainy Saturday morning. Everyone is gone and the house is quiet. Let your simple description of the present moment lead to something else, let the letter drift gently along.
The toughest letter to crank out is one that is meant to impress, as we all know from writing job applications; if it's hard work to slip off a letter to a friend, maybe you're trying too hard to be terrific. A letter is only a report to someone who already likes you for reasons other than your brilliance. Take it easy.
Don't worry about form. It's not a term paper. When you come to the end of one episode, just start a new paragraph. You can go from a few lines about the sad state of pro football to your fond memories of Mexico to your cat's urinary tract infection to a few thoughts on personal indebtedness and on to the kitchen sink and what's in it. The more you write, the easier it gets, and when you have a True True Friend to write to, a compadre, a soul sibling, then it's like driving a car down a country road, you just get behind the keyboard and press on the gas.
Don't tear up the page and start over when you write a bad line - try to write your way out of it. Make mistakes and plunge on. Let the letter cook along and let yourself be bold. Outrage, confusion, love - whatever is in your mind, let it find a way on to the page. Writing is a means of discovery, always, and when you come to the end and write Yours ever or Hugs and kisses, you'll know something you didn't when you wrote Dear Pal.
Probably your friend will put your letter away, and it'll be read again a few years from now - and it will improve with age. And forty years from now, your friend's grandkids will dig it out of the attic and read it, a sweet and precious relic of the ancient eighties that gives them a sudden clear glimpse of you and her and the world we old-timers knew. You will then have created an object of art. Your simple lines about where you went, who you saw, what they said, will speak to those children and they will feel in their hearts the humanity of our times.
You can't pick up a phone and call the future and tell them about our times. You have to pick up a piece of paper.
PURCHASE the book 'We Are Still Married' >>>
Praise for the book:
“Garrison Keillor made it possible, after twenty years of black humor…to be both funny and nice, hip and winsome, scathing and loving, all in the flick of a single many-barbed quip——The Washington Post Book World
“Keillor’s literary style is as flexible and assured as his vocal delivery. It can slip from mood to mood so subtly and quickly you’re never quite sure where you are…. [His] writing has the silvery slip of running water, so graceful and easy it’s hard to believe it can carry so much that is jagged and unresolved. His integrity lies in his not smoothing away those rough edges in the swift current of his prose; they’re bruisingly, sometimes cuttingly there.” —The Village Voice
WHO IS THE BEST CRYPTO ASSET RECOVERY FIRM? CAPTAINWEBGENESIS
Allow us to demonstrate how to use a private investigation and money recovery body to practice ethical hacking. Our areas of expertise include situations involving cryptocurrency, recovery scams, and ethical hacking. We examine the factors affecting your score because we are also specialists in credit repair. Every software tool required to carry out RECOVERIES from beginning to end is on hand. Watch out for bogus testimonials and reviews on the internet; the offenders and writers collaborate to create a syndicate. Utilize the contacts address below to get in touch with our team as soon as possible.
Contact info:
Email; Captainwebgenesis@hackermail. com
Whatspp: +44(792)838-8124
WHO IS THE BEST CRYPTO ASSET RECOVERY FIRM? CAPTAINWEBGENESIS
Allow us to demonstrate how to use a private investigation and money recovery body to practice ethical hacking. Our areas of expertise include situations involving cryptocurrency, recovery scams, and ethical hacking. We examine the factors affecting your score because we are also specialists in credit repair. Every software tool required to carry out RECOVERIES from beginning to end is on hand. Watch out for bogus testimonials and reviews on the internet; the offenders and writers collaborate to create a syndicate. Utilize the contacts address below to get in touch with our team as soon as possible.
Contact info:
Email; Captainwebgenesis@hackermail. com
Whatspp: +44(792)838-8124
FUNDS RECOVERY & PHONE HACK/CLONE??
📝**FUNDS RECOVERY**
SCAMS CAN TAKE MANY FORMS, BUT ALL SHARE A COMMON GOAL: TAKING YOUR MONEY
Fraud can happen in many ways—whether it’s binary options scams, love scams, forex fraud, crypto investment schemes, or loan scams. If you’ve been a victim of any of these, it’s easy to feel confused and overwhelmed by the different financial institutions and legal processes involved in recovery. The journey to reclaim your stolen funds can often be frustrating and difficult to manage on your own.
The recovery process usually involves navigating complex legal and financial systems, which can be even more challenging without experience. In such cases, it’s crucial to seek professional help from a trusted firm specializing in fund recovery.
📝**PHONE HACKING/CLONE**
Working on a project like this requires precise analysis and multiple layers of security breaches to successfully gain access to or clone a target’s phone or social media accounts. This includes access to Facebook, email, fix credit scores, and school results or company databases. If you’ve ever needed a hacking service that involves breaching security and obtaining maximum access, you’re looking at the best service provider right now.
📝“ BE CAUTIOUS OF IMPERSONATORS AND SCAMS ”
The success of recovering your stolen funds or gaining access to a target’s device largely depends on the company you choose to work with. Unfortunately, the internet is filled with fraudulent firms posing as recovery or phone hacking services. These scammers use deceptive tactics and false promises, claiming they can recover lost funds or clone phones, but their real goal is just to take more of your money. Always be cautious and verify the credibility of any service before trusting them.
Many scammers impersonate legitimate firms and use deceptive tactics such as creating fake email addresses with numbers.
It’s essential to be vigilant and carefully select a reputable firm with proven expertise.
📝**Official Contact Information**
Please be advised that we only operate through one official website and email address:
- Website: assetsretrievalboard.com http://assetsretrievalboard.com
- Email: info@assetsretrievalboard.com
We operate in all region
Hire a hacker in USA
Hire a hacker in the United States
Hire a hacker in Canada
Hire a hacker in Australia
Hire a hacker in United Kingdom
Hire a hacker in London
Hire a hacker in Austria
Hire a hacker in Belgium
Hire a hacker in Bulgaria
Hire a hacker in Czech Republic
Hire a hacker in Denmark
Hire a hacker in Estonia
Hire a hacker in Finland
Hire a hacker in France
Hire a hacker in Germany
Hire a hacker in Greece
Hire a hacker in Hungary
hire a hacker in Hong Kong
hire a hacker in china
hire a hacker in Japan
Hire a hacker in Ireland Etc….
📝**PHONE HACKING/BREACH**
You can reach our phone hacking team specifically for phone hacks/clone services on:
🗳️ * Datahacks@mail.com*
🗳️ * Datahacks@mail.com*
Our team includes experienced professionals who will thoroughly investigate your case and utilize advanced artificial intelligence strategies to help resolve your issue.
Trust an experienced and reputable firm to maximize your chances of success.
© 2026. [Assetsretrievalboard.com]
All rights reserved
Hashtags: #cryptoinvestments #investment #investmentscams #cryptorecovery #recovery #crypto #bitcoin #cryptoscam #fundsrecovery #iphonehacks #iphone #apple #phoneclone #clone
THE BEST AND LEGITIMATE HACKER IN THE WORLD // GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER
Do you want to hire a hacker to solve your problems in various conditions? If you require the services of a genuine hacker and do not have any idea about how to hire a professional hacker online, you are at the right place. There are many cryptocurrency theft cases and schemes currently in circulation in the whole world so it’s important to be careful before investing with any platform. I lost almost all my savings in a fake investment website but I got rescued through the recovery hacker called GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER as they recovered my stolen funds completely without hassle or hidden fees. This expert retrieved my stolen funds remotely within a few hours as I got notification on my blockchain wallet my funds had been restored. This is the best help I ever got on the internet and I decided to give them a good review about their good job and how quick the are in helping and standing for individuals in tough situations. Kindly contact them if you are in trouble.
Email: geovcoordinateshacker@gmail.com
Website; https://geovcoordinateshac.wixsite.com/geo-coordinates-hack
THE BEST AND LEGITIMATE HACKER IN THE WORLD // GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER
Do you want to hire a hacker to solve your problems in various conditions? If you require the services of a genuine hacker and do not have any idea about how to hire a professional hacker online, you are at the right place. There are many cryptocurrency theft cases and schemes currently in circulation in the whole world so it’s important to be careful before investing with any platform. I lost almost all my savings in a fake investment website but I got rescued through the recovery hacker called GEO COORDINATES RECOVERY HACKER as they recovered my stolen funds completely without hassle or hidden fees. This expert retrieved my stolen funds remotely within a few hours as I got notification on my blockchain wallet my funds had been restored. This is the best help I ever got on the internet and I decided to give them a good review about their good job and how quick the are in helping and standing for individuals in tough situations. Kindly contact them if you are in trouble.
Email: geovcoordinateshacker@gmail.com
Website; https://geovcoordinateshac.wixsite.com/geo-coordinates-hack